Mobile telecommunication systems are based on various communication standards, for example, Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) standard, Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) standards, Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) standard, 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), and the like. The mobile telecommunication systems provide various types of services such as voice, packet data exchange, and the like. In the mobile telecommunication systems, user data is exchanged between a Mobile Node (MN) and a base station by establishing a connection. For enabling a connection in the mobile telecommunication systems a radio access network (RAN) is required. The RAN is part of a telecommunication system.
Generally at a particular geographical location, there can be one or more RANs that enable MNs to use mobile telecommunication services. Each of the one or more RAN is associated with a Core Network (CN). Each of the one or more RANs is associated with a communication standard. Further, a MN can move from one RAN associated with one communication standard to another RAN associated with another communication standard using Media Independent Handover (MIH) services. However, authenticity of MN for using MIH services should be maintained. Thus security and service authentication procedures are performed prior to enabling communication.
According to IEEE 802.21 communication standard, MIH security is implemented using service access control procedures. The service access control can provide MIH security independent to network access and network protection. However, it also shares authentication server, for example AAA server and access authentication, with media and network access. The access authentication establishes keys for using MIH services and media and/or network protection. Some MIH services are accessed using Information Server (InfoServ). The InfoServ is a centralized entity. For example the InfoServ is associated with the CN. Thus, the InfoServ authentication should also be performed to access the MIH services.
In the mobile telecommunication system each of the one or more RAN includes a Point of Service for providing Event Services (ES), Information Services (IS) and Command Services (CS) to the MNs. The PoS should also have a trust relationship with the InfoServ in the CN for accessing the MIH services provided by the InfoServ. Further, all the mobile nodes (MNs) in each of the one or more RANs may also have to establish a Service Authorization (SA) with the InfoServ.
Thus InfoServ authentication uses a higher layer transport for the authentication, as the InfoServ authentication is present in CN and not in RAN. Therefore MN associated with a RAN needs to perform a network access authentication and MIH service SA establishment with PoS associated with the RAN. However, for accessing InfoServ a Security Association (SA) should also be established with PoS associated with the core network. In an embodiment, the InfoServ is a PoS.
Thus, IEEE 802.21 MIH security requires a MN associated with a RAN to use service access control or service authentication to establish SA with a PoS associated with the RAN. Further the MIH security also requires MN to have SA with the PoS associated with the CN. There are various methods for establishing SA. One method is to use key hierarchies. In the key hierarchy method, a root key is used to derive further keys based on identities of participating network entities. The first level of the derived key is established between the PoS associated with the RAN and the PoS associated with the CN. A second level of the derived key can be derived by the MN and the PoS associated with the CN. MN can use the second level of derived key to access the PoS associated with the CN. Thus significant processing is required for providing service authentication.